Copa Libertadores

Copa Libertadores de América

The current Copa Bridgestone Libertadores official logo, in use since 2012
Founded	1960
Region	South America (CONMEBOL) and Mexico
Number of teams	38
Current champions	Atlético Mineiro (1st title)
Most successful club(s)	Independiente (7 titles)
Television broadcasters	List of broadcasters
Website	Official website
2014 Copa Libertadores de América

The Copa Libertadores de América (Portuguese: Copa Libertadores da América), is an annual international club football competition organized by CONMEBOL since 1960. It is one of the most prestigious tournaments in the world and the most prestigious club competition in South American football. The tournament is named in honor of the Libertadores (Portuguese and Spanish for Liberators), the main leaders of the South American wars of independence,^[1] so a literal translation of its name into English would be the "Liberators of America Cup".

It is currently sponsored by Bridgestone and thus currently known as the Copa Bridgestone Libertadores for sponsorship reasons. The competition has had several different formats over its lifetime. Initially, only the champions of the South American leagues participated. In 1966, the runners-up of the South American leagues began to join. In 1998, Mexican teams were invited to compete, contesting regularly since the 2000 edition, when the tournament was expanded from 20 to 32 teams. Today at least three clubs per country compete in the tournament, while Argentina and Brazil each have five clubs participating. Traditionally, a group stage has always been used but the amount of teams per group has varied several times.^[1][2]

In the present format, the tournament consists of six stages, with the first stage taking place in early February. The six surviving teams from the first stage join 26 teams in the second stage, in which there are eight groups consisting of four teams each. The eight group winners and eight runners-up enter the final four stages, better known as the knockout stages, which ends with the finals anywhere between June and August. The winner of the Copa Libertadores becomes eligible to play in two extra tournaments: the FIFA Club World Cup and the Recopa Sudamericana.^[3]

Argentine club Independiente is the most successful club in the cup history, having won the tournament 7 times. Argentine clubs have accumulated the most amount of victories with 22 wins while Brazil has the largest number of different winning teams, with a total of 10 clubs having won the title. The cup has been won by 24 different clubs, 12 of which have won the title more than once and won consecutively by 6 clubs, most recently by Boca Juniors in 2001.^[4]

The reigning champion of the competition is Brazilian club Atlético Mineiro, who won their first title after beating Olimpia of Paraguay.

History

The clashes for the Copa Río de La Plata between the champions of Argentina and Uruguay kindled the idea of a continental competition in the 1930s.^[1] In 1948, the South American Championship of Champions (Spanish: Campeonato Sudamericano de Campeones), the most direct precursor to the Copa Libertadores, was played and organized by Chilean club Colo-Colo after years of planning and organization.^[1] Held in Santiago, it brought together the champions of each nation's top national leagues.^[1] The tournament was won by Vasco da Gama of Brazil.^[1][5][6]

However, it was not until 1958 when the basis and format of the competition was created, thanks to the efforts of Peñarol's board leaders. On March 5, 1959, at the 24th South American Congress held in Buenos Aires, the competition was approved by the International Affairs Committee. In 1966, it was named in honor of the heroes of South American liberation, such as José Gervasio Artigas, Bernardo O'Higgins, José de San Martín, Pedro I, and Simón Bolívar, among others.^[1]

Beginnings: 1960–1969

The first edition of the Copa Libertadores took place during in 1960. Seven teams participated: Bahia of Brazil, Jorge Wilstermann of Bolivia, Millonarios of Colombia, Olimpia of Paraguay, Peñarol of Uruguay, San Lorenzo of Argentina and Universidad de Chile. The first Copa Libertadores match took place on April 19, 1960. It was won by Peñarol, who defeated Jorge Wilstermann 7–1. The first goal in Copa Libertadores history was scored by Carlos Borges of Peñarol. The Uruguayans won the first ever edition defeating Olimpia in the finals and successfully defended the title in 1961.^[7] It proved to be historic justice for many (even today) due to Peñarol's great contributions to the creation of the tournament,^[8] but the Copa Libertadores did not receive international attention until its third edition, which was swept through the sublime football of a Santos team led by Pelé, considered by some the best club team of all times.^[9] Os Santásticos, also known as O Balé Branco (or white ballet), which dazzled the world during that time, won the title of 1962 defeating the defending champion Peñarol in the finals.^[10] A year later, O Rei and his compatriot Coutinho demonstrated their skills again in the form of tricks, dribbles, backheels, and goals including two in the second leg of the final at La Bombonera, to subdue Boca Juniors 2–1 and keep the trophy again.^[10][11]

Argentine football finally inscribed their name on the winner's list in 1964 when Independiente became the champion after disposing of the powerful title holders Santos and Uruguayan side Nacional in the finals.^[12][13] Independiente successfully defend the title in 1965;^[13] Peñarol would defeat River Plate in a playoff to win their third title,^[7] and Racing would go on to claim the spoils in 1967.^[14] The next biggest highlight of the competition, after Pele's Santos, did not happen until 1968 with the introduction of Estudiantes de La Plata.^[15]

A formation of the Estudiantes de La Plata team that won the title in 1968, 1969 and 1970.

Estudiantes de La Plata, a modest neighborhood club and a denominated minor team in Argentina, had a style that prioritized athletic preparation and achieving results at all costs.^{[16][17][18][19]} Led by coach Osvaldo Zubeldía and a team built around figures such as Carlos Bilardo, Oscar Malbernat and Juan Ramón Verón, went on to become the first ever tricampeon of the competition.^{[20][21][22][23]} The pincharratas won their first title in 1968 by defeating Palmeiras. They successfully defended the title in 1969 and 1970 against Nacional and Peñarol, respectively.^[24][25] Although Peñarol was the first club to win three titles, Estudiantes had done this feat consecutively.

Argentine decade: 1970–1979

The 1970s were dominated by Argentine clubs, with the exception of three editions. In a rematch of the 1969 finals, Nacional emerged as the champions of the 1971 tournament after overcoming an Estudiantes squad depleted of key players that helped lift it to its recent glory.^[26] With two titles already in its showcase, Independiente created a winning mystique which was prolongated by Francisco Sa, José Omar Pastoriza, Ricardo Bochini and Daniel Bertoni: pillars of the titles of 1972, 1973, 1974, and 1975.^[13] Their tetracampeonato has been a feat only achieved this once. Independiente's home stadium, La Doble Visera, became one of the most dreaded venues for visiting teams to play at.^[27] The first of these titles came in the 1972 edition when Independiente faced off against Universitario de Deportes of Peru in the finals. Universitario became the first team from the Pacific coast to reach the finals after eliminating Uruguayan giants Peñarol and defending champion Nacional at the semifinal stage. The first leg in Lima ended on a 0–0 tie, while the second leg in Avellaneda finished 2–1 favoring the home team. Independiente successfully defended the title a year later against Colo-Colo after winning the playoff match 2–1. Los Diablos Rojos kept the trophy again in 1974 after defeating São Paulo 1–0 in a hard-fought playoff. In 1975, Unión Española also failed to dethroned the champion in the finals after losing the playoff 2–0.

The reign of Los Diablos Rojos finally ended in 1976 when they were defeated by fellow Argentine club River Plate in the second phase in a dramatic playoff for a place in the finals for their second time in history. However, in the finals River Plate themselves would be beaten by Cruzeiro of Brazil as the title returned to a Brazilian club after 13 years.^[28]

After having the trophy elude them in 1963 at the hands of Pelé's Santos, Boca Juniors finally managed to appear on the continental football map. Towards the end of the decade, the Xeneizes reached the finals on three consecutive years. The first was in 1977 in which Boca Juniors earned their first victory against defending champion Cruzeiro.^[29] After both teams won their home legs 1–0, a playoff at a neutral venue was chosen to break the tie. The playoff match finished in a tense 0–0 tie and was defined in a penalty shootout. Boca Juniors won the trophy again in 1978 after thumping Deportivo Cali of Colombia 4–0 in the second leg of the finals.^[30] In the following year, it looked as if Boca Juniors would also achieve a triple championship, only to have Olimpia end that dream after a highly volatile, second leg match in Buenos Aires.^[31] Just like in 1963, Boca Juniors had to watch as the visiting team lifted the Copa Libertadores in their home ground and Olimpia became the first (and so far only) team from Paraguay to do so.

Pacific emergence and last Uruguayan triumphs: 1980–1989

Nine years after their first triumph, Nacional won their second cup in 1980 after overcoming Internacional. Despite Brazil's strong status as a football power in South America, 1981 marked only the fourth title for Brazilian clubs. Flamengo, led by stars such as Zico, Júnior, Leandro, Adílio, Nunes, Cláudio Adão, Tita and Carpegiani, sparkled as the Mengão's golden generation reached the pinnacle of their careers by beating Cobreloa of Chile.^[32][33] After 16 years of near-continuous failures, Peñarol would go on to win the cup, for their fourth time, in 1982 after beating the 1981 finalists in consecutive series.^[7] First, the Manyas disposed of defending champion Flamengo 1–0 in the last match of the second phase at Flamengo's home ground, the famed Estádio do Maracanã. Then in the final, they repeated the dosis on Cobreloa winning a decisive second leg match 1–0 in Santiago. Grêmio of Porto Alegre made history by defeating Peñarol to become the champion in 1983.^[34] In 1984, Independiente won their seventh cup, a record that stands today, after defeating title holders Grêmio which included an incredible 1–0 win in the first away leg highlighting Jorge Burruchaga and a veteran Ricardo Bochini.^[13]

Another team rose from the Pacific as Cobreloa did. Colombian club América de Cali reached three consecutive finals in 1985, 1986 and 1987 but like Cobreloa they could not manage to win a single one. In 1985, Argentinos Juniors, a small club from the neighborhood of La Paternal in Buenos Aires, astonished South America as they eliminated title holders Independiente in La Doble Visera 2–1 during the last decisive match of the second round, for a place in the final. Argentinos Juniors went on to win an unprecedented title by beating America de Cali in the play-off match via a penalty shootout.^[35] After the frustrations of 1966 and 1976, River Plate reached a third final in 1986 and were crowned Cup champion for the first time ever after winning both legs of the final series against America de Cali, 2–1 at the Estadio Pascual Guerrero and 1–0 at Estadio Monumental Antonio Vespucio Liberti.^[36][37] Peñarol won the Cup again in 1987 after beating America de Cali 2–1 in the decisive playoff;^[7] it proved to be their last hurrah in the international scene as Uruguayan football, in general, suffered a great decline at the end of the 1980s.^[38] The Manyas fierce rivals, Nacional, also won one last cup in 1988 before falling from the continental limelight.

It was not until 1989 before a Pacific team finally broke the dominance of the established, Atlantic powers. Atlético Nacional of Medellín won the final series becoming the first team from Colombia to win the tournament. In a tournament filled with controversial refereeing and circumstances, Atletico Nacional faced off against Olimpia losing the first leg in Asunción 2–0. Because Estadio Atanasio Girardot, their home stadium, did not have the minimum capacity CONMEBOL required to host a final, the second leg was played in Bogota's El Campín with the match ending 2–0 in favor of Atletico Nacional. Having tied the series, Atletico Nacional become that year's champion after winning a penalty shootout which needed to go into four rounds of sudden death.^[39] Goalkeeper René Higuita cemented his legendary status with an outstanding performance as he stopped four of the nine Paraguayan kicks and scored one himself.^[40] The 1989 edition also had another significant first: it was the first ever time that no club from Argentina, Uruguay, and Brazil managed to reach the final. That trend would continue on until 1992.

Renaissance: 1990–1999

Having led Olimpia to the 1979 title as manager, Luis Cubilla returned to the club's bench in 1988. Around the legendary goalkeeper Ever Hugo Almeida, Gabriel González, Adriano Samaniego, and star Raul Vicente Amarilla, a rejuvenated decano boasted an extremely formidable side that promised a return to the glory days of the late 1970s. After coming up short in 1989 against Atlético Nacional, Olimpia reached the 1990 Copa Libertadores finals after defeating the defending champion in a climactic semifinal series decided on penalties. In the finals, Olimpia defeated Barcelona of Ecuador 3–1 in aggregate in a relatively comfortable victory to win their second title.^[31] Olimpia will reach the 1991 Copa Libertadores finals afterwards, once again, defeating Atlético Nacional in the semifinals and face Colo-Colo. Led by Yugoslavian coach Mirko Jozić, the Chilean squad beat the defending champion 3–0, sparking an unforgettable party in the country that celebrated the conquest in the streets as well as ending Olimpia's second golden era.^[41]

In 1992, São Paulo rose from being a mere great in Brazil to become an international powerhouse. The monumentally-recognized manager Telê Santana turned to the Paulistas's youth and instilled his style of quick, cheerful, and decisive football. Led by stars such as Zetti, Müller, Raí, Cafu, Palhinha, São Paulo beat Newell's Old Boys of Argentina to begin a dynasty.^[42] In 1993 São Paulo successfully defended the title by thumping Universidad Católica of Chile in the finals.^[42] The Brazilian side became the first club since Boca Juniors in 1978 to win 2 consecutive Copa Libertadores. Like Boca Juniors, however, they would reach another final in 1994 only to have the penalty shoot-out, the instrument of their first victory, come back to haunt them as they lost the title to Vélez Sársfield of Argentina.^[43] Vélez Sársfield's consegration in the Copa Libertadores was considered an institutional victory and it was Carlos Bianchi, a former Vélez player, that built a squad capable of playing on an equal footing on any terrain against any team.

With a highly-compact tactical lineup and the goals of the formidable duo Jardel and Paulo Nunes, Grêmio won the coveted trophy again in 1995 after beating an Atlético Nacional led, once again, by the iconic figure of René Higuita.^[44] Jardel became the top scorer in this edition with the high mark of 12 goals. The team coached by Luiz Felipe Scolari had some fundamental pillars as defender (and captain) Adilson and the skilful midfielder Arilson. In the 1996 edition, figures such as Hernán Crespo, Matías Almeyda and Enzo Francescoli helped River Plate secure its second title after defeating América de Cali in a rematch of the 1986 final.^[45]

The Copa Libertadores stayed on Brazilian soil for the remaining of the 1990s as Cruzeiro, Vasco da Gama and Palmeiras won the spoils. The cup of 1997 clashed Cruzeiro and the Peruvian team Sporting Cristal. It was defined in the second leg of the final when Cruzeiro broke the deadlock with just under 15 minutes left in a match attended by over 106,000 spectators in the Mineirão.^[28] Vasco da Gama defeated Barcelona SC with ease to enter in the gallery of champions in 1998. The decade ended on a high note when Palmeiras and Deportivo Cali, both runners-up in the competition before, bid to become winners for the first time and the trophy, in 1999, was decided in a dramatic back-and-forth match that went into penalties. Luiz Felipe Scolari managed to lead yet another club to victory as the Verdão won 4–3 in São Paulo.^[46][47]

This decade proved to be a major turning point in the history of the competition as the Copa Libertadores went through a great deal of growth and change. Having been long overshadowed by Argentina's clubs, the Brazilians begin overshadowing their neighbors as they saw its clubs reach the final on eight of this decade's ten finals (and winning six).^[48] From 1998 onwards, the Copa Libertadores was sponsored by Toyota and became known as the Copa Toyota Libertadores.^[49] That same year, Mexican clubs, although affiliated to CONCACAF, started taking part in the competition thanks to quotas obtained from the Pre-Libertadores which pitted Mexican and Venezuelan clubs for two slots in the group stage.^[2] The tournament was expanded to 36 teams and economic incentives were introduced by an agreement between CONMEBOL and Toyota Motor Corporation.^[49] All the teams that advance to the second stage of the tournament received $25,000 for their participation.^[50]

Decade of resurgences: 2000–2009

During the 2000 Copa Libertadores, Boca Juniors returned to the top of the continent and raised the Copa Libertadores again after 22 years. Masterfully directed by Carlos Bianchi, the Virrey, along with outstanding players like Mauricio Serna, Jorge Bermúdez, Óscar Córdoba, Juan Roman Riquelme, and Martín Palermo, among others, revitalized the club to establish it among the world's best.^[51] The Xeneizes started this legacy by defeating defending champion Palmeiras in the final series.^[52] Boca Juniors won the 2001 edition after, once again, defeating Palmeiras in the semifinals and Cruz Azul in the final series to successfully defend the trophy.^[4][53] Cruz Azul became the first ever Mexican club to reach the final after great performances against River Plate and an inspired Rosario Central. Like their predecessors from the late 1970s however, Boca Juniors depleted of some of its figures would fall short of winning three titles in a row. As with Juan Carlos Lorenzo's men, the Xeneizes became frustrated as they were eliminated by Olimpia, this time during the quarterfinals. Led by World Cup winner-turned manager Nery Pumpido, Olimpia would overcome Grêmio (after some controversy) and surprise finalists São Caetano.^[31] Despite this triumph, Olimpia did not create the winning mystique of its past golden generations and went out of the 2003 edition, in the round of 16, after being routed by Grêmio 6–2, avenging their controversial loss from the year before.

The 2003 tournament became an exceptional show as many teams such as América de Cali, River Plate, Grêmio, Cobreloa, Racing, among others, brought their best sides in generations and unexpected teams such as Independiente Medellín and Paysandu became revelations in what was, arguably, the best Copa Libertadores in history.^[54] The biggest news of the competition was previous champion Santos. Qualifying to the tournament as Brazilian champion, coached by Emerson Leão and containing marvelous figures such as Renato, Alex, Léo, Ricardo Oliveira, Diego, Robinho, and Elano, the Santásticos became a symbol of entertaining and cheerful football that resembled Pelé's generation of the 1960s. Boca Juniors once again found talent in their ranks to fill the gap left by the very successful group of 2000–2001 (with upcoming stars Rolando Schiavi, Roberto Abbondanzieri and Carlos Tevez). Boca Juniors and Santos would eventually meet in a rematch of the 1963 final; Boca avenged the 1963 defeat, at the hands O Rei and co., by defeating Santos in both legs of the finals.^[55][56] Carlos Bianchi won the Cup a fourth time and became the most successful manager in the competition's history and Boca Juniors hailed themselves pentacampeones. Boca Juniors reached their fourth final in five tournaments in 2004 but they were beaten by surprise-outfit Once Caldas, ending Boca's dream generation.^[55] Once Caldas, using a very conservative and defensive style of football, became the second ever Colombian side to win the competition after eliminating powerhouses such as Santos and São Paulo.

Ruing their semifinal exit in 2004, São Paulo made an outstanding comeback in 2005 to contest the final with Atlético Paranaense. This became the first ever Copa Libertadores finals to feature two teams from the same football association;^[57] The Tricolor won their third crown after thrashing Atlético Paranaense in the final leg, making them South American champion.^[42] The 2006 tournament was also an all-Brazilian final and featured the defending champion São Paulo against Internacional. Led by team captain Fernandão, the Colorados beat São Paulo 2–1 at Estádio do Morumbi and held the defending champions at a 2–2 draw at home in Porto Alegre as Internacional won their first ever title.^[58][59] Internacional's arch-rivals, Grêmio, surprised many as they reached the final in 2007 with a relative young squad. However, it was not to be as Boca Juniors, reinforced by aging but still-capable players, came away with the trophy to win their sixth title in history at the hands of Juan Román Riquelme.^[60][61]

In 2008 the tournament stopped being sponsored by Toyota. Grupo Santander, one of the largest banks in the world, became the sponsor of the Copa Libertadores, thus, the name change to Copa Santander Libertadores.^[49] In that season, LDU Quito became the first team from Ecuador to win the Copa Libertadores after defeating Fluminense 3–1 on penalties, with Jose Francisco Cevallos being a key player blocking three penalties in the final shootout in what is considered the best ever final series in the history of the competition.^[62][63] It is also the final with the most goals in the history of the tournament. The biggest resurgence of the decade happened in the 50th edition of the Copa Libertadores and it was won by a former power that has reinvented itself. Estudiantes de La Plata, led by Juan Sebastián Verón, won their fourth title 39 long years after the successful generation of the 1960s (led by Juan Sebastián's father, Juan Ramón). The pincharatas brilliantly managed to emulate their predecessors by defeating Cruzeiro 2–1 on the return leg in Belo Horizonte.^[48][64]

On 3 December 2012, CONMEBOL announced a new sponsorship with auto and truck parts manufacturer Bridgestone. The company will sponsorship the tournament from 2013 until 2017. The name of the tournament was now changed to Copa Bridgestone Libertadores.^{[65][66][67][68]}

Format

Qualification

As of 2009, most teams qualify to the Copa Libertadores by winning half-year tournaments called the Apertura and Clausura tournaments or by finishing among the top teams in their championship.^[3] The countries that use this format are Argentina, Bolivia, Chile, Colombia, Mexico, Paraguay and Venezuela.^[3] Peru and Ecuador have developed new formats for qualification to the Copa Libertadores involving several stages.^[3] Brazil is the only South American league to use a European league format instead of the Apertura and Clausura format.^[3] However, one berth for the Copa Libertadores can be won by winning the Copa do Brasil.^[3]

Peru, Uruguay and Mexico used a second tournament to determine who qualifies to the Libertadores (the "Liguilla Pre-Libertadores" since 1992 to 1997, the "Liguilla Pre-Libertadores de América" since 1974 to 2009, and the InterLiga from 2004 to 2010, respectively).^[2][3] Chile still uses a competition to determine a Copa Libertadores participant, the "Liguilla para Copa Libertadores". Argentina used an analogous method only once in 1992. Starting in 2011, the winner of the Copa Sudamericana will qualify directly to the following Copa Libertadores.^[3][69]

The first, second and final stages of the competition is currently contested by the following:^[3]

Distribution of clubs in the Copa Libertadores

First stage
Last placed team of defending champion's association Best non-qualified team of Copa Sudamericana Fourth-placed team of Campeonato Brasileiro Série A Runners-up of Torneo Clausura Best non-champion Primera División season aggregate Best non-champion Primera A season aggregate Third-placed team of Serie A Best non-champion Primera División season aggregate 3rd-best Torneo Descentralizado season aggregate 3rd-best Primera División season aggregate 3rd-best Primera División season aggregate 3rd-placed eligible team of Torneo Apertura
Second stage
Defending champions Winners of the Copa Sudamericana Six winners from the first stage Champions of Torneo Clausura Champions of Torneo Inicial Best non-champion Primera División season aggregate 2nd-best non-champion Primera División season aggregate Champions of Campeonato Brasileiro Série A Champions of Copa do Brasil Runners-up of Campeonato Brasileiro Série A Third-placed team of Campeonato Brasileiro Série A Champions of Torneo Clausura Champions of Torneo Apertura Champions of Campeonato Apertura Champions of Campeonato Clausura Champions of Torneo Apertura Champions of Torneo Finalización Champions of Serie A Runners-up of Serie A Best Primera División champion season aggregate 2nd-best Primera División champion season aggregate Champions of Torneo Descentralizado Runners-up of Torneo Descentralizado Champions of Primera División Runners-up of Primera División Champions of Primera División Serie Final 2nd-best Primera División season aggregate 1st-placed eligible team of Torneo Apertura 2nd-placed eligible team of Torneo Apertura
Final stage
8 groups winners of the second stage 8 groups runners-up of the second stage

The winners of the previous season's Copa Libertadores, i.e., the title holder, are given an additional entry if they do not qualify for the tournament through their domestic performance; however, if the title holder qualify for the tournament through their domestic performance, an additional entry would be granted to the next eligible team, "replacing" the title holder.

If the winners of the Copa Sudamericana do not qualify for the tournament through their domestic performance, this entry will come at the expense of the last-placed team of their association.

Rules

Unlike most other competitions around the world, the Copa Libertadores historically did not use extra time, an additional period of play specified under the rules of a sport to bring a game to a decision and avoid declaring the match a tie or draw, or away goals, a method of breaking ties in football and other sports when teams play each other twice, once at each team's home ground, to decide a tie that was level on aggregate.^[3] From 1960 to 1987, two-legged ties were decided on points (teams would be awarded 2 points for a win, 1 point for a draw and 0 points for a loss), without taking goal difference into consideration. If both teams were level on points after two legs, a third match would be played at a neutral site. Goal difference would only come into play if the third match was drawn. If the third match did not produce an immediate winner a penalty shootout, a method used in football to decide which team progresses to the next stage of a tournament (or wins the tournament) following a tied game via kicking penalty kicks, was used to determine a winner.^[3]

From 1988 onwards, two-legged ties were decided on points, followed by goal difference, with an immediate penalty shootout if the tie was level on aggregate after full-time of the second leg.^[3] Starting with the 2005 event, CONMEBOL began to use the away goals rule.^[3] In 2008, the finals became an exception to the away goals rule and employed extra time.^[3] From 1995 onwards, the "Three points for a win" standard, a system adopted by FIFA in 1995 that places additional value on wins, was adopted in CONMEBOL, with teams now earning 3 points for a win, 1 point for a draw and 0 points for a loss.

Tournament

The current tournament features 38 clubs competing over a six- to eight-month period. There are three stages: the first stage, the second stage and the knockout stage.

The first stage pits a number of clubs, currently 12, in series of two-legged knockout ties.^[3] The six survivors join 26 clubs in the second stage, in which they are divided into eight groups of four.^[3] The teams in each group play in a double round-robin format, with each team playing home and away games against each team in their group.^[3] The top two teams from each group are then drawn into the knockout stage, which consists of two-legged knockout ties.^[3] From that point, the competition proceeds with two-legged knockout ties to quarterfinals, semifinals, and the finals.^[3] Between 1960 and 1987 the previous winners did not enter the competition until the semifinal stage, making it much easier to retain the cup.^[3]

Between 1960 and 2004, the winner of the tournament participated for the now-defunct Intercontinental Cup or (after 1980) Toyota Cup, a football competition endorsed by UEFA and CONMEBOL, contested against the winners of the European Cup (renamed UEFA Champions League)^[3] Since then, the winner plays in the Club World Cup, an international football competition contested by the champion clubs from all six continental confederations. It is organized by the Fédération Internationale de Football Association (FIFA), the sport's global governing body. Because Europe and South America are considered the strongest centers of the sport, the champions of those continents enter directly into the semifinals.^[3] The winning team also qualifies to play in the Recopa Sudamericana, a two-legged final series against the winners of the Copa Sudamericana.^[3]

Trophy

The tournament shares its name with the trophy, also called the Copa Libertadores or simply la Copa, which is awarded to the Copa Libertadores winner. It was designed by Italian designer Alberto de Gasperi, an immigrant of Peru, in Camusso Jewelry of Lima (owned by Gasperi) at the behest of CONMEBOL.^[70] The top of the laurel is made of sterling silver, with the exception of the football player at the top (it is made of bronze with a silver coating).^[71]

The pedestal, which contains badges from every winner of the competition, is made of hardwood plywood. The badges provides the year of the edition, the full name of the winning club, the city that the club comes from and the nation. To the left of that information is the club logo. The current trophy is the third in the history of the competition; in 1970, Estudiantes's third victory in the tournament entitled them to keep the original trophy permanently. Independiente won the second trophy in 1974 after winning the competition for the third consecutive time.

Cultural impact

The Copa Libertadores remains an important goal for South Americans, a golden paradigm to the players and teams of the continent. The folklore, fanfare, and organization of many competitions around the world owe its aspects to the Libertadores.

El Sueño Libertador

The Sueño Libertador is a promotional Spanish phrase used in the context of winning or attempting to win the Copa Libertadores.^[72] Thus, when a team gets eliminated from the competition, it is said that the team has awakened from the liberator dream. The project normally starts after the club win one's national league (which qualify their winner to compete in the following year's Copa Libertadores), and the clubs usually spend large sums of money to win the Copa Libertadores.

In 1998 for example, Vasco da Gama spent $10 million to win the competition, and in 1998, Palmeiras, managed by Luiz Felipe Scolari, brought Júnior Baiano among other players, and successfully won the 1999 Copa Libertadores. The tournament is highly regarded among its participants. In 2010, players from Guadalajara stated that they would rather play the Copa Libertadores final rather than appear on a friendly against Spain, the reigning FIFA World Cup holders who are playing with their best side,^[73] and dispute their own national league.^[74] Players from Santos FC have stated, after their triumph in the 2010 Copa do Brasil, that they would rather stay in the club and participate in the 2011 Copa Libertadores, despite having multi-million dollar contracts lining up for them from clubs participating in the UEFA Champions League, such as Chelsea of England and Lyon of France.^[75]

Oscar Cordoba has stated that the Copa Libertadores was the most important trophy he attained (above the Argentine league, Intercontinental Cup, etc.) ^[76] Deco, winner of two UEFA Champions League medals with FC Porto and FC Barcelona 2004 and 2006, respectively, stated he would exchange those two victories for a Copa Libertadores triumph.^[77]

'La Copa se mira y no se toca'

Since its inception in 1960, the Copa Libertadores had predominantly been passed around clubs from nations with an Atlantic coast: Argentina, Brazil and Uruguay. Olimpia Asunción of Paraguay became the first team outside of those nations to win the Copa Libertadores when they triumphed in 1979.

The first club from a country with a Pacific coast to reach a final was Universitario of Lima, Peru, who lost in 1972 against Independiente of Argentina.^[13] The following year, Independiente defeated Colo-Colo of Chile, another Pacific team, creating the myth that the trophy would never go to the west, giving birth to the saying, "La Copa se mira y no se toca" (Spanish: The Cup is seen and not touched).^[13] Unión Española became the third Pacific team to reach the final in 1975, although they also lost to Independiente.^[13] Atletico Nacional of Medellin, Colombia, won the Copa Libertadores in 1989, becoming the first nation with a Pacific coastline to win the tournament,^[39] although Medellin is the capital of the Antioquia Departament, whose coastline is entirely in the Atlantic.

Other clubs from nations with Pacific coastlines to have won the competition are Colo-Colo in 1991, Once Caldas of Colombia in 2004, and LDU Quito of Ecuador in 2008.

Sponsorship

Like the FIFA World Cup, the Copa Libertadores is sponsored by a group of multinational corporations. Unlike the premier football tournament forementioned, the competition uses a single, main sponsor; it is currently primarily sponsored by Bridgestone Corporation, a multinational auto and truck parts manufacturer founded in 1931 by Shojiro Ishibashi (石橋正二郎, Ishibashi Shōjirō) in the city of Kurume, Fukuoka, Japan. The name Bridgestone comes from a calque translation and transposition of ishibashi, meaning "stone bridge" in Japanese. The deal running for a period of 5 years began with the 2012 edition.^[49] As the main sponsor of the tournament, the competition will carry the name of the auto manufacturer corporation. Thus, the competition is known officially as the '"Copa Bridgestone Libertadores'".

The first major sponsor was Toyota Motor Corporation, a Japanese multinational automaker headquartered in Toyota, Aichi, Japan, who signed a 10-year contract with CONMEBOL in 1997.^[78] The second major sponsor was Banco Santander who signed a 5-year contract with CONMEBOL in 2008. Banco Santander is a Spanish banking group centered on Banco Santander, S.A. and one of the largest banks in the world in terms of market capitalisation. It originated in Santander, Cantabria, Spain.^[79]

However, the competition has had many secondary sponsors that invest in the tournament as well. Many of these sponsors are nationally based but have expanded to other nations. Nike supplies the official match ball, as they do for all other CONMEBOL competitions.^[80] Konami's Pro Evolution Soccer is also a secondary sponsor as the official Copa Libertadores video game.^[81][82] This is the first time that the competition is being featured on a video game.^[83] Individual clubs may wear jerseys with advertising, even if such sponsors conflict with those of the Copa Libertadores.^[3]

The tournament's current secondary sponsors and brands advertised (in italic) are:

Grupo Santander[84] Banco Santander[84] Pasión Libertadores[84] Fox Sports[84] Fox Sports en Latinoamérica[84] Fox Deportes[84] Heineken International Cristal Kaiser Schneider Tecate

Konami[81] Pro Evolution Soccer[81] Medley Makita McDonald's Nike[80] Samsung Toyota[84] Visa[84]

Ambassador

Pelé, widely regarded among football historians, former players and fans to be one of the best and most accomplished footballers in the game's history,^{[85][86][87][88][89][90][91][92][93][94]} is the ambassador of the Copa Libertadores, having won it with Santos twice.^[95] In 1999, he was voted as the Football Player of the Century by the IFFHS International Federation of Football History and Statistics. In the same year French weekly magazine France-Football consulted their former "Ballon D'Or" winners to elect the Football Player of the Century. Pelé came in first position.^[96] In 1999 the International Olympic Committee named Pelé the "Athlete of the Century".^[97]

In his career he scored 760 official goals, 541 in league championships, making him the top scorer of all time. In total Pelé scored 1281 goals in 1363 games.^[98] In his native Brazil, Pelé is hailed as a national hero. He is known for his accomplishments and contributions to the game of football.^[99] He is also acknowledged for his vocal support of policies to improve the social conditions of the poor (when he scored his 1,000th goal he dedicated it to the poor children of Brazil).^[100]

During his career, he became known as "The King" (O Rei).^[101]

Official anthem

	Copa Libertadores anthem A section of Ludwig van Beethoven's Symphony No. 9 in D minor, Op. 125 "Choral", the Copa Libertadores' official theme. It is played before and after every match on live television.
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The official anthem of the Copa Libertadores is a section of Ludwig van Beethoven's Symphony No. 9 in D minor, Op. 125 "Choral".^[102] The famous choral finale is Beethoven's musical representation of Universal Brotherhood.^[103] The piece is a non-literal adaptation of An die Freude (English: Ode to Joy) by Friedrich Schiller, who Beethoven admired.^[104] The anthem's chorus is played before the beginning and the end of television broadcasts of the matches in the Copa Libertadores.^[102] The piece is also played during the draw of teams at the beginning of each edition.^[105] It is also played during the awarding ceremony.

Match ball

The current match ball for the Copa Libertadores is named the Total 90 Ascente Libertadores, manufactured by Nike,.^[80] It is one of the many balls produced by the American sports equipment maker for CONMEBOL, replacing the Mercurial Veloci Hi-Vis in 2009. The ball, approved by FIFA and weighting approximately 422 g, has a spherical shape that allows the ball to fly faster, farther, and more accurately.^[80] According to Nike, the ball's geometric precision distributes pressure evenly across panels and around the ball. The compressed polyethylene layer stores energy from impact and releases it at launch, and the 6-wing carbon-latex air chamber improves acceleration.^[80]

Another feature of the ball is its rubber layer; it was designed to allow a better response while retaining the impact energy and releases it in the coup.^[80] Its support material of cross-linked nitrogen-expanded foam improves its retention and durability of its shape.^[80] Polyester support fabric enhances structure and stability. The asymmetrical high-contrast graphic around the ball creates an optimal flicker as the ball rotates for a more powerful visual signal, allowing the player to more easily identify and track the ball.^[80]

Media coverage

The tournament attracts television audiences beyond South America.^[106] The matches are broadcast in over 135 countries, with commentaries in more than 30 languages, and it is often considered as one of the most watched sports events on TV;^[106] Fox Sports en Latinoamérica, for example, reaches more than 25 million households in the American continent alone.^[107] The 2009 edition saw over 1 billion television spectators in total tune in for the competition.^[95] Torneos y Competencias is a secondary sponsor that sponsors the television broadcasts of the Copa Libertadores.^[3] Setanta Sports Australia broadcasts live Copa Libertadores matches in Australia.

Prize money

Clubs in the Copa Libertadores receive $25,000 for advancing into the second stage and $210,000 per home match in the group phase.^[50] That amount is derived from television rights and stadium advertising.^[50] The payment per home match increases to $295,000 in the round of 16.^[3][50] The prize money then increases as each quarterfinalist gets $375,000, $525,000 for each semifinalist, $625,000 for the runner-up, and $1,000,000 for the winner.^[50]

The winner also receives $2 million from Banco Santander as a bonus.^[50][108]

The top goalscorer of the tournament receives the Alberto Spencer Trophy and $30,000. The best player of the tournament receives the Premio Santander and $30,000.^[109][110] The Fair Play Trophy, sponsored by Samsung, and $50,000 will be awareded for the first time in 2011 to the team with the best discipline in each edition.^[111][112]

Records and statistics

Winning clubs

Club	Won	Runner-up	Years won	Years Runner-up
Independiente	7	0	1964, 1965, 1972, 1973, 1974, 1975, 1984	—
Boca Juniors	6	4	1977, 1978, 2000, 2001, 2003, 2007	1963, 1979, 2004, 2012
Peñarol	5	5	1960, 1961, 1966, 1982, 1987	1962, 1965, 1970, 1983, 2011
Estudiantes	4	1	1968, 1969, 1970, 2009	1971
Olimpia	3	4	1979, 1990, 2002	1960, 1989, 1991, 2013
Nacional	3	3	1971, 1980, 1988	1964, 1967, 1969
São Paulo	3	3	1992, 1993, 2005	1974, 1994, 2006
Santos	3	1	1962, 1963, 2011	2003
Cruzeiro	2	2	1976, 1997	1977, 2009
Grêmio	2	2	1983, 1995	1984, 2007
River Plate	2	2	1986, 1996	1966, 1976
Internacional	2	1	2006, 2010	1980
Palmeiras	1	3	1999	1961, 1968, 2000
Atlético Nacional	1	1	1989	1995
Colo-Colo	1	1	1991	1973
Racing	1	0	1967	—
Flamengo	1	0	1981	—
Argentinos Juniors	1	0	1985	—
Vélez Sársfield	1	0	1994	—
Vasco da Gama	1	0	1998	—
Once Caldas	1	0	2004	—
LDU Quito	1	0	2008	—
Corinthians	1	0	2012	—
Atlético Mineiro	1	0	2013	—
América de Cali	0	4	—	1985, 1986, 1987, 1996
Deportivo Cali	0	2	—	1978, 1999
Cobreloa	0	2	—	1981, 1982
Newell's Old Boys	0	2	—	1988, 1992
Barcelona	0	2	—	1990, 1998
Universitario	0	1	—	1972
Unión Española	0	1	—	1975
Universidad Católica	0	1	—	1993
Sporting Cristal	0	1	—	1997
Cruz Azul	0	1	—	2001
São Caetano	0	1	—	2002
Atlético Paranaense	0	1	—	2005
Fluminense	0	1	—	2008
Guadalajara	0	1	—	2010

By country

Country	Won	Runner-up
Argentina	22	9
Brazil	17	15
Uruguay	8	8
Paraguay	3	4
Colombia	2	7
Chile	1	5
Ecuador	1	2
Peru	0	2
Mexico	0	2

Top scorers

Rank	Country	Player	Goals	Games	Goal Ratio	Debut	Clubs
1		Alberto Spencer	54	87	0.62	1960	Peñarol, Barcelona SC
2		Fernando Morena	37	77	0.48	1973	Peñarol
3		Pedro Virgilio Rocha	36	88	0.41	1962	Peñarol, São Paulo, Palmeiras
4		Daniel Onega	31	47	0.66	1966	River Plate
5		Julio Morales	30	76	0.39	1966	Nacional
6		Antony de Ávila	29	94	0.31	1983	América de Cali, Barcelona SC
		Juan Carlos Sarnari	29	62	0.47	1966	River Plate, Universidad Católica, Universidad de Chile, Santa Fe
		Luizão	29	43	0.67	1998	Vasco da Gama, Corinthians, Grêmio, São Paulo
9		Juan Carlos Sánchez	26	53	0.49	1973	Jorge Wilstermann, Blooming, San Jose
		Luis Artime	26	40	0.65	1966	Independiente, Nacional

Most appearances

Rank	Country	Player	Appearances	Goals	From	To	Clubs
1		Ever Hugo Almeida	113	1	1973	1990	Olimpia
2		Antony de Ávila	94	29	1983	1998	América de Cali, Barcelona SC
3		Vladimir Soria	93	4	1986	2000	Bolívar
4		Willington Ortiz	92	19	1973	1988	Millonarios, América de Cali, Deportivo Cali
5		Pedro Rocha	88	36	1962	1979	Peñarol, São Paulo, Palmeiras
6		Alberto Spencer	87	54	1960	1972	Peñarol, Barcelona SC
		Carlos Borja	87	11	1979	1997	Bolívar
8		Juan Battaglia	85	22	1978	1990	Cerro Porteño, América de Cali
9		Álex Escobar	83	14	1985	2000	América de Cali, LDU Quito
10		Clemente Rodríguez	82	2	2001	2013	Boca Juniors, Estudiantes

References

Further reading

• Goldblatt, David Goldblatt (2008). The Ball Is Round: A Global History of Soccer. Penguin Group. ISBN 1-59448-296-9. 
• Jozsa, Frank (2009). Global Sports: Cultures, Markets and Organizations. World Scientific. ISBN 981-283-569-5. 
• Barraza, Jorge (1990). Copa Libertadores de América, 30 años (in Spanish). Confederación Sudamericana de Fútbol. 
• Napoleão, Antonio Carlos (1999). O Brasil na Taça Libertadores da América (in Portuguese). Mauad Editora Ltda. ISBN 85-7478-001-4. 

External links

Look up Sueño Libertador in Wiktionary, the free dictionary.

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Copa Libertadores.

• CONMEBOL.COM Official Site of CONMEBOL.
• Fútbol Santander Official Sponsor of the Copa Libertadores de América.
• Copa Libertadores at Fox Sports en Español
• Copa Libertadores at ESPN
• Copa Libertadores at Goal
• Copa Libertadores at Univision
• Copa Libertadores at Fox Soccer
• Copa Libertadores results at RSSSF.com
• Copa Libertadores at worldfootball.net
• Copa Libertadores at southamericanfutbol.com

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v t e Copa Libertadores de América
Seasons	1960 1961 1962 1963 1964 1965 1966 1967 1968 1969 1970 1971 1972 1973 1974 1975 1976 1977 1978 1979 1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015
Finals	1960 1961 1962 1963 1964 1965 1966 1967 1968 1969 1970 1971 1972 1973 1974 1975 1976 1977 1978 1979 1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013
Broadcasters Historical table History Records and statistics Top scorers Trophy Winning managers Winning players Winning teams

v t e Football in South America (CONMEBOL) Argentina (AFA) Men's national team (U-20, U-17) Women's national team (U-20, U-17) Primera División Copa Argentina Bolivia (FBF) Men's national team (U-20, U-17) Women's national team (U-20, U-17) Liga de Fútbol Profesional Copa Aerosur Brazil (CBF) Men's national team (U-20, U-17) Women's national team (U-20, U-17) Campeonato Brasileiro Série A Copa do Brasil Chile (FFC) Men's national team (U-20, U-17) Women's national team (U-20, U-17) Primera División Copa Chile Colombia (FCF) Men's national team (U-20, U-17) Women's national team (U-20, U-17) Primera A Copa Colombia Ecuador (FEF) Men's national team (U-20, U-17) Women's national team (U-20, U-17) Serie A Paraguay (APF) Men's national team (U-20, U-17) Women's national team (U-20, U-17) Primera División Peru (FPF) Men's national team (U-20, U-17) Women's national team (U-20, U-17) Primera División Copa Inca Uruguay (AUF) Men's national team (U-20, U-17) Women's national team (U-20, U-17) Primera División Venezuela (FVF) Men's national team (U-20, U-17) Women's national team (U-20, U-17) Primera División Copa Venezuela National team competitions Men Copa América Under-20 Football Championship Under-17 Football Championship Under-15 Football Championship Pan-American Games Superclásico de las Américas Pan American Championship Bolivarian Games South American Games Women Women's Football Championship Under-20 Women's Football Championship Under-17 Women's Football Championship Club competitions Men Copa Libertadores de América Copa Sudamericana Recopa Sudamericana Copa Suruga Bank Under-20 Copa Libertadores Women Copa Libertadores de Fútbol Femenino Defunct Intercontinental Cup Copa CONMEBOL Copa Interamericana Copa Mercosur Copa Merconorte Supercopa Libertadores Copa Master de Supercopa Copa de Oro Copa Master de CONMEBOL Copa Ganadores de Copa Campeonato Sudamericano de Campeones South American Footballer of the Year South American Coach of the Year South American Best 11 Top-division clubs Club competition winning teams Club competition winning managers

v t e International men's club football FIFA FIFA Club World Cup List of association football clubs Asia AFC – Champions League AFC Cup President's Cup Top-division clubs Africa CAF – Champions League Confederation Cup Super Cup Top-division clubs North America, Central America and the Caribbean CONCACAF – Champions League Top-division clubs South America CONMEBOL – Copa Libertadores Copa Sudamericana Recopa Sudamericana Top-division clubs Oceania OFC – Champions League Top-division clubs Europe UEFA – Champions League Europa League Super Cup Top-division clubs See also: International women's club football